Words in the Silence
by Ebony McCloud
Summary: Words weren't a language he was gifted with, but he always found a way to say what he meant.


**A/N: A challenge was issued by a pile of drugs from space. It's a little rough around the edges, but when I'm working with a prompt that I'm not gifted with (hugs) and am under a time constraint, this is what you get. Take that CelestialKetamine.**

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Her father rarely spoke. Unlike her mother and uncle, who would gush about her regularly, Muzu, who had started praising her efforts, or even her grandfather, who was content to talk with her for hours one end, her father would simply sit and smile fondly at her.

According to her mother, this was the way he had been ever since he had chosen the path of being a knight. Even with her mother, he spent more often than not being silent; however, Mipha wasn't bothered by this. Somehow, her mother was capable of deciphering his thoughts even when she couldn't see any change on his face.

In her early years, Alolu hadn't been bothered by her father's near silence, but in recent years, it had weighed heavily on her mind. Was he disappointed?

Was he apathetic toward her?

Did he put up with her out of some sort of obligation?

Would he even miss her if she were to disappear?

When she had brought her concerns to her mother, Mipha had observed her quietly for a long time, much like her own father would. Finally, she gave her daughter a simple set of instructions: to pay attention to how her father interacted with the people around him and contrast those interactions with the way he behaved with Alolu herself.

So, that's what Alolu did. Unfortunately, there was little for her to go off of. While her mother may have been able to spot the intricacies in her father's expressions, she was not. Very often, all she could see was an impassive wall, even when he smiled. It was almost like his face was made of stone.

The only real difference she noticed was that he would hug her mother. Not in public of course, as that would have been frowned upon by the elders, regardless of what anyone, including the King, would have thought.

As she continued trying to make sense of him, she grew increasingly frustrated, both with his apparent lack of understanding of her needs and her inability to communicate with him.

How was she supposed to ask such a personal question of someone made of stone?

Finally, she snapped at him after having enough of the blasted silence. Even as she shouted at him and asked every painful question that had been weighing on her mind, he remained stoic, not showing a hint of pain, remorse, or even sympathy. That made her even angrier, giving her yet another reason to vent.

Her mother, Muzu, her grandfather, even her uncles Sidon and Revali would have cut her off and reminded her to show her father respect. He just stood silently and let her continue her tirade.

In the middle of it all, she began to break down from the frustration, anger, and hurt that he barely saw fit to speak to her, and she looked down as the tears started to flow. That was when her father's golden arms reached out and pulled her into an unexpected hug, surprising her so much that the tears stopped for a moment.

Unlike her mother, his hug was not soft and delicate. Unlike her uncle Sidon, it was not bone crushing and enthusiastic. Unlike her grandfather, it was not enormous and jovial. No, it was rough and strong, with one arm wrapped around her upper back while his other hand was placed on the back of her head. He continued to hold her like that as she cried, as though determined to protect her from the rest of the world if that was what was needed. It reminded her of the nights when she would slip into her parent's bed and wrap herself in his abnormally large fins. Strangely, it was while he was holding her that it finally occurred to her how uncomfortable that must have been for him, yet he had never once complained.

He continued to hold her, setting his cheek on her head as she cried into his shoulder. She wasn't sure how long they spent like that, but through it all, he remained steadfast as always.

When she finally pulled away, he set a hand on her shoulder and looked deeply into her eyes. Alolu had never noticed how deep those blue pools were, how much pain, sorrow, joy, and love they held in them as he looked deeply into her own eyes.

Though the only thing he had said out loud during the entire exchange was a simple "I love you," she found that he had told her a great deal. A great deal which would stay with her decades later.

Her father rarely spoke with words, but that didn't mean he had nothing to say.


End file.
